Lincoln to host National High School Finals Rodeo

LINCOLN – The National High School Rodeo Association (NHSRA) board of national director voted unanimously Monday to return the National High School Finals Rodeo to the Lancaster Event Center in Lincoln in 2026 and 2027, according to a press release.

The event center will also host the event in July 2020 and 2021. The NHSFR has rotated between Gillette and Rock Springs, Wyo. the past 11 years.

“Nebraska’s central location and the Lancaster Event Center’s master plan to add indoor arena space were the key factors in the decision to bring the finals again to Lincoln in 2026/2027,” NHSRA Director for Nebraska Tricia Schaffer said. “Each year our association votes more strongly to choose facilities that offer our 1,700 contestants the best once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete, without the factor of weather, throughout the 13 performances.”

The NHSFR is the world’s largest rodeo from a contestant standpoint with 1,700 high school rodeo athletes competing in 13 rodeo specialties and two shooting competitions. Each of the fifty states, provinces and countries send its top four qualifiers in each specialty.